Archive for July 2010

- It’s expected to be hot this weekend. Maybe the hottest it has been all summer. With events like JazzFest and more people spending time outdoors, we’ll be talking about heatstroke and what you can do to stay safe on tonight’s HealthBeat.

– Speaking of JazzFest, we’ll be talking about local talent and the second stage. Who are you looking forward to hearing at JazzFest?

– The 41st Street bridge project is wrapping up, but there’s still some work to be done. You’ll be able to drive on the newest section of the bridge starting today. Obviously, drivers will be happy, but what does it mean to businesses? We’ll have the story for you tonight.

– Wally Wingert is the voice of The Tonight Show and he’s a South Dakota native. We’ll tell you about his voiceover career. Check out a preview:

– We are covering the United Way donation to the backpack program that feeds needy children in the city. (Here’s a story we did last year on the program.) We’ll have the backpack distribution schedule online with this story as well.

There’s a vaccine for dogs that protects against a disease that can be found in squirrels. If left untreated, this disease can be fatal. A local vet has seen a few cases this week. We’ll tell you about that tonight.

The Sioux Falls School District is hiring a company to evaluate the schools’ energy efficiency. We’ll show you what they’re looking for and the potential savings from making a few changes. Have you made small changes for your home to be a little more energy efficient? Have you noticed a significant savings?

A ban on texting while driving goes into effect Thursday in Nebraska. That means, four of South Dakota’s six neighboring states (Iowa, Minnesota, Nebraska and Wyoming) will have laws against texting while driving. South Dakota, North Dakota and Montana currently have no laws against cell phone use while driving. (SOURCE: http://www.ghsa.org/html/stateinfo/laws/cellphone_laws.html)

Do you think all states should have laws against cell phone use and driving? Do you text & drive? How many drivers do you see texting while driving and do you notice anything different about their driving abilities?

We’re following up on two of these accidents. We’re hoping to learn more about how a boat trailer detached from a truck and hit another vehicle near Madison — and we’re also looking at the 28-year-old woman who police say drove the wrong way on I-229 Saturday causing a head-on collision. She faces felony charges including vehicular homicide, vehicular battery, and DUI 3rd.

Because of the accident on I-90 yesterday, we’ve pushed back our plans on the earwig story. However, thank you for those who left comment on the last blog. We realize the interest in these bugs — mainly, how to get rid of them. It’s in the planner for today, so hopefully it all works out.

On that note, we’re going to talk to those who enforce trucking rules. Authorities say the driver of the semi fell asleep at the wheel, so we’ll look into truck driver regulations. We’re also looking at tired drivers. In addition to the truck vs. RV accident, police say a woman may have fallen asleep before her car crashed into a local business Wednesday.

We’ve brought you the stories of flooding from all across the state over the past couple months, so now we want to check in on these areas for an update.

Apparently there’s a lot of talk about a pesky insect known as the “earwig” — supposedly the population is at peak levels — and people just want to get rid of them. We pulled up some photos of the bug during the meeting and it was met by oohs and ahhs. Are you noticing more earwigs this summer?

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Today we’re working on several stories including:

– We have a crew on the way to an accident that has closed I-90 near the Bridgewater exit. More details to come.

– We’re in Rosebud talking to a family who’s been displaced because of storm damage Monday night.

– Keeping your pets safe from lawn chemicals. What may be helpful for your lawn can be dangerous to your pets.

– Mold has set in after recent flooding, so how do you get rid of it safely and effectively?

Things should be back to normal after a holiday weekend. There are more faces in the newsroom, that’s for sure.

– We talked about more troopers on the highways over the holiday and are waiting on a final report on what their increased presence meant in terms of citations, etc. On a related note, we’re curious whether the new-colored patrol cars mean they’re catching more speeders by surprise. What do you think?

– There was quite a bit of discussion regarding a new study shows that students do better in certain areas when school starts a later in the morning. We’re wondering if Sioux Falls middle schools have noticed this since they pushed back their start time for this year.

– A little bit on mosquitos and mosquito bites in today’s HealthBeat. How do you treat mosquito bites? Have you heard any mosquito myths? Recent flooding seems to have made this area a haven for these guys to hang out. Especially after a weekend of camping or spending time outside, a lot of you have probably been itching the past few days.

People shooting off their own fireworks don’t always clean up after themselves; we’ll take a look at the mess left behind.

And if you spent much time outside this weekend, chances are you have a mosquito bite or two. We’ll have more from Mitchell, where the mosquito numbers are finally dropping after an explosion of the biting bugs.